Some 4chan users claim they breached Tea, the women's dating safety app that has topped the US App Store charts, exposing selfies and drivers' licenses

Users from 4chan claim to have discovered an exposed database hosted on Google's mobile app development platform, Firebase …

404 Media 2025-07-25 Emanuel Maiberg

Context & Ripple Effects

Tea's viral growth, including 900,000 new signups, put a safety-focused dating product and its handling of highly sensitive identity material under unusual scrutiny. The app's rapid rise made an alleged exposure consequential beyond a routine consumer-app incident.

The report is the first point in a widening incident arc: Tea later said an older database leak involved 72,000 images, while subsequent reporting described a separate exposure of more than 1.1 million messages.

First-order effects

Tea users whose selfies or government-ID images were allegedly reachable face immediate privacy, impersonation, and harassment risk; Tea must investigate the reported Firebase configuration and notify affected users as warranted.
Tea's core safety proposition is directly challenged because the alleged exposure involves the verification materials users supplied to access a women-focused service.

Second-order effects

The incident raises the cost of identity verification for dating-safety apps: operators may need to minimize retained documents, tighten access controls, and explain how third-party cloud services are configured.
App-store momentum can become a liability when trust breaks during rapid growth; Tea's acquisition gains may be offset by user churn and greater scrutiny of its security practices, especially after reports of multiple security flaws.

Third-order effects

If safety apps increasingly collect identity evidence and user-generated allegations, privacy protection becomes inseparable from product trust: a single exposed data store can undermine both anonymity and safety claims.
The pattern strengthens pressure for clearer accountability around access control and retention of sensitive consumer data, though the available coverage does not establish whether Firebase itself caused this exposure.

The trend: Consumer safety platforms are colliding with a broader access-control challenge: products built on identity verification and private reporting must protect the very data that makes their trust model work.

Discussion

@cryptocyberia @cryptocyberia on x
TLDR the Tea app stores everyone's photo and ID enuncrypted in a public firebase storage bucket. Hahahahahah. Was this vibe coded? [image]
@fakecelsmustgo Chuddius Maximus on x
Turns out the “Tea” app has god-awful security - all its verification photos got leaked by the hacker known as “4chan” Total trvcel victory [image]
@albert_jo_ Albert Jo on x
Somebody already made a male version of Tea and it's now the #11 app on the app store [image]
@uncledoomer @uncledoomer on x
my wife told the “tea” app that i didnt do the dishes even though it was my turn on the chore chart and now a bunch of 5's are saying i should kill my self
@niyeema38 @niyeema38 on x
The tea app is suppose to be a where men aren't suppose to know they are potentially being defamed and unable to defend themselves. That's so fucked up.
@heyalexfriedman Alex Friedman on x
The funny thing about the Tea app is there are guys posted on there with pictures of them posing with guns and bricks of drugs and the caption will literally be like “do you have any tea on this guy trying to see if he's a red flag???”
@friskkmkay @friskkmkay on x
Tea hitting #1 on the App Store is a collective response to how unsafe, manipulative, and emotionally exhausting modern dating has become. Tea isn't about gossip. It's about survival, community, and accountability. Men are not socially penalized for bad dating behavior. Tea
@summersalts @summersalts on x
Unless the tea app is stating “he beat on me” “he raped me” or “he trapped me some place & went mental” it's very low vibrational to just gossip. saw a tiktok about a girl who put guy on there for giving her “gay vibes” at their olive garden job for he ignoring her advances
@dexerto @dexerto on x
Tea has become the #1 free app on the US App Store The women-only dating advice app lets users anonymously share red flags, swap info, and get feedback about men [image]
@emmasmugshot Amanda Peabody on x
Ironically this guy just Streisand-ed himself into performing the Tea app's fundamental purpose: warning women about predatory men. [image]
@realmamaeagle Kei on x
Seeing this and the tea app remind me how great it is to be out of the dating game. Goofy shit on both ends. I get the safety argument but using these apps to be petty isn't it.
@hallllllah Hal-Uh on x
the tea app was created to let other women know which men in their community are abusive and rapists. hope this helps!
@sleepyharlott @sleepyharlott on x
this is the tea app these men are mad about btw [image]
@lvrbri @lvrbri on x
The tea app is for woman's SAFETY and to warn other woman. NOT to see who's been “ran through” Fucking men are idiots
@fortullos @fortullos on x
I really hate what I'm hearing about the Tea App but I can't voice concerns without being lumped in with guys like this. [image]
@questionableway Just Matt on x
re: tea app, it seems pretty socially deleterious if any human can have a social media profile they can't view created for them without their consent or knowledge
@jacobjohnson494 Jason Waterfalls on x
Had my picture posted on the Tea app without consent. Filed a copyright/publicity complaint via Apple Legal - App Store Dispute Form. Apple looped in Tea devs, warned them. Post was gone in hours. If this happens to you, go through Apple since they have to respond.
@fearedbuck FearBuck on x
Tea is now the number one app on the App Store Tea is a women-only app where users anonymously share info and warnings about men to spot red flags and get feedback. [image]

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